Build Your Practice on Evidence Based Care

Tuesday, March 09, 2010

The world of alternative and complementary medicine
is full of treatment options, but will a popular therapy truly work
for your particular patient's needs? When your patients come
to you for help, earn their trust and confidence by relying on
solid evidence based practice principles.

What is Evidence Based Practice (EBP)? EBP is a method of using
the best available research evidence in combination with clinical
expertise while respecting an individual patient's needs and
concerns. Students and physicians trained in evidence based
practice, learn how to find and interpret research that will help
them make clinical decisions that best fit a particular patient
situation.

Evidence based practice starts and ends with the patient. The
clinician determines what information is needed using their
expertise, skills and knowledge. Patient expectations also factor
into forming the question the physician decides to
research.

When a clinical question necessitates a search for high quality
evidence, the trained professional poses a "structured" clinical
question to lead the search. The "PICO" format for a clinical
question provides structure for an efficient literature search.
PICO stand for Patient - Intervention - Comparison - Outcome. The
skill to develop a "PICO-format" question is part of key training
in evidence based practice.

The wealth of medical literature and research findings available
today is immense and often daunting. Training in evidence based
practice principles helps students and physicians know how to
quickly zero in on the appropriate research and how to interpret it
correctly.

"When you are starting your health care career, passion,
enthusiasm and philosophy are great. However, the need for evidence
based clinical decision making is growing stronger," says Dr.
Christopher Wolcott, graduate of National University of Health
Sciences (NUHS) and instructor in the university's evidence based
practice curriculum.

NUHS has incorporated classes in evidence based practice
throughout its curriculum as part of a grant received from the
National Institutes of Health. In addition, the university's
Department of Research sponsors seminars, journal clubs and
case-study presentations all geared to keep its faculty and
students excited about integrating research and evidence based
practice principles into their teaching and clinical care. Indeed,
National has always insisted that techniques, adjustments and
therapies taught in its degree programs have their basis in sound
scientific principles backed by research.

NUHS has a history as a leader in research for the chiropractic
profession and is expanding its research role into other
integrative medical applications. NUHS also publishes three
scientific journals for the chiropractic profession including the
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, the only
refereed, internationally indexed chiropractic scientific journal.
JMPT was also selected as the official research publication of the
American Chiropractic Association.

National's research department has received several grants from
funding sources such as the National Institutes of Health -
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, the
Department of Health and Human Services, as well as the Foundation
for Chiropractic Education and Research (FCER).